2022 Cabernet Sauvignon

96 Points Owen Bargreen

“The jury is still out on the overall quality and age-ability of Napa’s 2022 reds in general, largely because of the massive heat dome at the beginning of harvest, when areas including Napa and Sonoma counties experienced some of the hottest and driest days in the history of vine growing. But we uncovered plenty of evidence that good winemakers who made sharp harvest decisions and were in some cases willing to select out a large portion of the crop to increase the quality of the rest produced some excellent bottles. Arguing that case well are…Hertelendy…and several others. In many 2022s, we noted an abundance of ripe, juicy, red and black fruit character, often with a seemingly lighter, tangier texture than in a typical Napa vintage. A dark, smoky, spicy wine with plenty of black fruit flavors to balance the toasted oak influence and potent, fine-grained tannins. Dried blueberry, grilled plum, black pepper, graphite and espresso flavors on a firm structure with a lingering finish. A chewy mouthfeel softens in the finish, with lingering black fruit…” — James Suckling